Journey of a Jobseeker #4

One of the things I mentioned in my previous post is that I was invited for an interview by a major mobile network. Well, interviews are never fun, but they’re even less fun when they’re in a language you’re not fluent in. Still, you have to give everything a try, right? Plus, they approached me, so I really have nothing to lose.

I headed over to the interview last Friday afternoon and met with three people – the recruiting consultant, who has the final say on if I get hired or not, and two members of the team I’d be working with. Everything went smoothly, and apart from a couple not-quite-right things that I said (but, hey, everyone is allowed a couple mistakes here and there), I did my best.

Now, it may not be the same everywhere, but in The Netherlands, it’s very normal to have at least two rounds of interviews, even at companies of only 4 staff. Well, this company obviously has thousands of employees and so I can’t expect any less than two rounds. It left me a little puzzled, though, because when I asked what the second round would consist of, the recruiter said that it would be more about personal skills and character than about my work. But interviews with me are always very comprehensive because I talk so much (hehe), so I was left wondering what else they would ask me that we hadn’t spoken about already. But let’s leave that to the second round, if it comes.

Yesterday, I received a call from the recruiter saying that they would like me to do a little design test before they decide to invite me back. I was a little surprised, but not that surprised, because I’d done this sort of thing before. I was only surprised because they never mentioned anything about it previously. I personally dislike design tests because they’re a little degrading, especially if you’ve got at least five years experience under your belt. I think your portfolio should be enough proof of what you are capable of, and a face-to-face interview should also be enough to show your personality – of course you have to have the right person interviewing you who can read body language and interpret your character from the way you say things and not only the words that come out of your mouth. But that’s a story for another time.

So, yeah, I dislike design tests, but if you’re going to be invited by a multinational, you’re gonna have to do what they ask, and to be perfectly honest, this time I did understand why they wanted to give me this design test. The position they are offering is a purely digital one, while my portfolio is filled to the brim with print work. So, yeah, maybe they don’t ask all the candidates to prove themselves this way, but at least this time I do understand the reason behind this request.